Hao Wu: My girlfriend (now my
wife) decided to study in the States,
so I came with her. I wanted to study
fine art photography while experiencing American culture. After I did
some research, ICP’s general studies
program fit my plans very well.

PDNedu: How did your studies in
Asia compare with your experiences studying in the United States?

HW: The primary way to train artists
in Asia is apprenticeship, whereas art
education at ICP is more enlightening,
which allows me to deeply explore
what I truly want to express in my
heart. Studying the arts in China is
about accumulating and growing, in
Japan it’s about thinking and exploration and in the United States it’s about
classifying and creating.

PDNedu: When did you start
your self-portrait series?

HW: About a year after we came to
New York.

PDNedu: What types of lighting do
you use?

HW: I design different lighting based
on the environment and the story I
want to tell. Flash, strobe, LED, tungsten, even lamp light, I use them all
according to different circumstances.

PDNedu: What did you learn
about lighting from filmmaking?

HW: In learning to be a director, I
designed lighting based on different
stories and emotions, drawing lighting plan graphs. With photography,
I come up with a story first and then
choose appropriate lights.

PDNedu: Do you have any plans
to incorporate motion in future
projects?

HW: Yes. There’s an experimental
video on my Web site, “Tofu & Fork,”
which is in between motion and
stills. It’s different from my previous
video work and something I plan to
keep exploring.

PDNedu: What’s in store
for the future?

HW: Film and photography are
both art mediums that help me
to understand the world, express
myself and communicate with
others. Therefore, I don’t want to be
constrained by any medium. In five
years, I may direct a film that looks
like still photography. As for where, I
was born in China, studied in Japan
and currently live in the United
States—wherever the dream is. If the
technique develops, I’ll probably be
on the moon.

PDN PhotoPlus Expo
celebrates its 30th anniversary at New York’s
Jacob Javits Center
from October 24 to 26.

Students get preferredpricing and can save up to 50 percent on a full confer-ence pass, one-day passes and individual seminars.

Check out Nikon’s latest products, and mingle with
Nikon Ambassadors Jerry Ghionis, Corey Rich and
Amy Vitale, then get your questions ready to add to
the panel discussion, where you’ll get expert advice
on how to maintain a solid presence in a shifting field.

RSVP at: < www.pdngallery.com/rsvp/pdnedu_nikon>.

In addition to viewing the latest and greatest gear on
the expo floor (also free for students), three full days of
conference programming starts off with an inspiring
keynote by NASA astronaut Donald Pettit (It’s a Living,

PDNedu Spring 2013), at noon on Thursday, October 24.

For full details and to get the best value throughonline registration, visit < www.photoplusexpo.com>.

While back-to-school generally signals a step
indoors, New York–area students should head to the
Brooklyn waterfront during the month of September
for a wide array of photo events.

Explore the essence of community in the site-specific exhibition The Fence. More than 200 images
by 39 international photographers are featured on a
waterproof mesh banner, which stretches more than

1,000 feet through Brooklyn Bridge Park, from Pier

15 in Brooklyn Heights to Main Street in Dumbo.

From September 19 to September 29, Photoville
transforms 74,000 square feet around Pier 5 in
Brooklyn Bridge Park into a pop-up photo destination.

Fifty metal freight containers will become home to 48

exhibits, more than 50 lectures and hands-on workshops, seven nighttime events and a beer garden.

On Thursday and Friday, September 19/20 and

26/27, Photoville is open from 4 to 10 p.m., with weekend hours starting at noon. The Fence can be viewed
daily from 6 a.m. to 1 a.m. Details at < www.photo
villenyc.org> and < www.fence.photovillenyc.org>.

Preferred Student
Pricing at PDN

PhotoPlus Expo

A Fence Grows in Brooklyn,
and Photoville Too

INSIDE SELECTION: Hao Wu - 3448, 89th ST

Hao Wu, a 2013 graduate of the General Studies program at the
International Center of Photography (ICP) in New York, describes the
difference between studying art in Asia and the United States and talks
about the lighting in his collaborative self-portraits with his wife.

In this PDNedu photographer profile, we highlight an emerging talent whose work we discovered during a recent portfolio review event. We met with Hao Wu in June 2013 during ICP’s annual Career Day. For more of our interview with Wu, ⎯⎯from his experience with portfolio reviews
to his relationship with his collaborator/wife, visit < www.pdnedu.com>.

LESSONS IN LOVE AND ACCEP TANCE: Hao Wu’s richly lit series of collaborative self-portraits
with his wife balances the realism of documentary with the fiction of stage performance.